§ 34-A §3031 — Rights

Maine § 34-A §3031

• Jurisdiction: Maine
• Title 34-A: CORRECTIONS
• Ch. 3: CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES

Text

Any person residing in a correctional or detention facility has a right to:
1.
Food.
Nutritious food in adequate quantities;
2.
Medical care.
Adequate professional medical care and adequate professional mental health care, which do not include medical treatment or mental health treatment requested by the client that the facility's treating physician or treating psychiatrist or psychologist determines unnecessary. The commissioner may establish medical and dental fees not to exceed $5 for the medical and dental services that are provided pursuant to this subsection and a fee not to exceed $5 for prescriptions, medication or prosthetic devices. Except as provided in paragraph A, every client may be charged a medical or dental services fee for each medical or dental visit, prescription, medication or prosthetic device. The facility shall collect the fee. All money received by the department under this subsection is retained by the facility to offset the cost of medical and dental services, prescriptions, medication and prosthetic devices.
3.
Living conditions.
An acceptable level of sanitation, ventilation and light;
4.
Sleeping space.
A reasonable amount of space per person in any sleeping area;
5.
Exercise and recreation.
A reasonable opportunity for physical exercise;
6.
Protection from abuse.
Protection against any physical or psychological abuse;
7.
Area for personal effects.
A reasonably secure area for the maintenance of permitted personal effects;
8.
Visitation.
A reasonable opportunity to visit with relatives and friends, in accordance with departmental policies and institutional procedures, except that the department may restrict or prohibit visits when the restriction or prohibition is necessary for the security of the institution. Departmental policies and institutional procedures must provide to a person in a correctional facility or detention facility opportunities and conditions for visits with the child of the person that provide time together in settings that allow for as positive a parent-child interaction as practicably can be achieved while protecting the emotional and physical well-being of the child, as long as such visits are not prohibited by court order, prohibited by a department policy due to the child's being a victim of the person, contrary to the wishes of the child's other parent or guardian or inconsistent with the security of the institution;
9.
Menstrual products.
Comprehensive access to menstrual products, including, but not limited to, sanitary pads and tampons, provided and available at all times and without inconvenience or charge to a person who menstruates who resides in a correctional or detention facility; and
10.
Gender affirmation.
Have the person's consistently held gender identity respected and acknowledged, irrespective of anatomy or physique. Housing placements and search practices must be consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity except when such placement or search would present significant management or security problems to the correctional or detention facility or threaten the health and safety of the person. A person must have access to commissary items, clothing, personal property, programming and educational materials that are consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity. Correctional or detention facility staff shall address a person in a manner that is consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity.

Legislative History

PL 1983, c. 459, §6 (NEW). PL 1983, c. 581, §§16,59 (AMD). PL 1985, c. 752, §3 (AMD). PL 1987, c. 276 (AMD). PL 1989, c. 127, §5 (AMD). PL 1991, c. 314, §§34,35 (AMD). PL 1995, c. 201, §2 (AMD). PL 1995, c. 462, §D6 (AMD). PL 1999, c. 583, §8 (AMD). PL 2001, c. 458, §4 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 542, Pt. A, §59 (AMD). PL 2015, c. 291, §5 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 139, §§2, 3 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 263, §§3-5 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 359, §§2, 3 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 620, §6 (AMD).